Only The Start Of The Story

Joseph and Mary were not casually selected by God to be the earthly parents for His Son. They were faithful and obedient to God’s commands, even at great personal sacrifice and hardship. When all the things that we associate with Christmas—the long trip, the birth in a stable, the shepherds, the wise men, and the trip to Egypt—were finished, the real Christmas story began. The new family went back home to Nazareth, and simply continued to obey God just as they had done throughout the process. 

Though Jesus was perfect God from His birth, He was also human and He still needed to grow up and mature, and He did so with a constant example of obedience from His parents as they daily followed the law of God.

God’s plan for our lives is not mostly composed of large events and miracles, but of daily devotion and obedience to His Word. Ellen Sturgis Hooper wrote: “I slept, and dreamed that life was Beauty; I woke, and found that life was Duty.” Events like Christmas only happen occasionally, but each day we have the opportunity to live as Jesus lived in submission to the will of His Father. Rather than wishing for wondrous experiences and angelic visitations, we need to be content to walk in the footsteps of Jesus and live as He lived. This is God’s purpose for our lives: “For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren” (Romans 8:29).

Today’s Discipleship Principle: The true meaning of Christmas is not found in a single day, but in a lifetime of obedience and service to God.